Why Bodyweight Workouts Are Great for Burning Fat

The key to burning fat with bodyweight exercises boils down to using the right exercises, with the right tempo, and sequenced properly in a good workout structure.

That’s how you’re able to take just 8 bodyweight exercises and create 10 (and far more) bodyweight workouts that help you burn fat.

Since fat loss is the goal here, we want to focus on a few things:

Set up your bodyweight workouts as circuits, supersets, or tri-sets (more on that below)

Limit the amount of rest between exercises and sets

Use big movements that recruit more muscle

Use proper “tempo variation” (as I call it) to get more bang for your bodyweight buck.

Let’s break these down into more detail…

1. Bodyweight Workouts as Circuits, Supersets, or Tri-Sets

What’s a circuit?

Take any number of exercises and sequence them one after another, with limited rest in between each, and you’ve got yourself a circuit workout. This is a great way to get an overall fat burning and cardio training effect because your heart rate will be pumping due to the “go go go” nature of the workout.

What’s a superset?

A superset is where you take 2 exercises that involve non-competing muscle groups or movements (ie. push-ups and pull-ups) and you pair them together. Here, you would do one set of one exercise, then one set of the second exercise. Then, you could take a little breather and repeat.

What’s a tri-set?

A tri-set is a way of pairing together 3 exercises (a mini circuit, if you will) and moving from one to the next with limited rest. Once all 3 exercises are complete you can repeat the sequence for the required number of sets.

In all 3 of these scenarios, the benefit is that you’re not wasting time with your workout. You’re moving from one exercise to the next and as a result your body is continually working. A lot of muscle is being recruited and this great for burning fat because the more muscle you use, the more you raise your heart rate, and the more calories you burn.

2. Limit the Rest Between Exercises for More “Burn”

You don’t need to spend hours doing cardio when your workouts are structured properly. Following the 3 workout structure ideas above is all you need. If you’re a beginner, then take a little bit more rest between exercises. If you’re more advanced, then limit the rest you take between exercises.

You’ll be huffing and puffing all while doing strengthening bodyweight exercises. Why would you need to do extra cardio after that?

Huffing and puffing is a sign that your body requires a lot of oxygen to do the work. And the more oxygen you consume, the more calories you burn. It’s that simple.

3. Use Big Movements That Recruit More Muscle

Which exercise do you think would have more “metabolic” (ie. fat burning) effect – a sit-up or a step-up?

If you said step-up, congratulations. The reason it’s more fat loss friendly is because the step-up (and similar big movements) recruit more muscle. The more muscle involved, the more oxygen and energy needed to do the movement. And all that adds up to more energy expenditure – fat loss!

4. The Proper “Tempo Variation”

Very few people even know about tempo variation let alone use it. In a nutshell, this is a way of ensuring that you’re getting the most bang for your buck from each phase of each exercise you do.

Let me explain:

When you do a push-up, the pushing phase is known as the “concentric” contraction. This is where the muscles (of the chest) shorten as they contract. If you push explosively during this phase, you get better muscle recruitment which leads to greater strength and power improvements. It also requires more energy, which means you burn more fat. (1)

The lowering in the push-up – where you come back toward the floor – is called the “eccentric” contraction and this is the BIGGIE that almost everyone neglects.

Here, instead of just dropping toward the floor, you want to resist the pull of gravity and SLOWLY lower your body. Doing so recruits more muscle fibers, requires more energy, and increases your muscles’ “time under tension”, which has been shown to burn more calories. (2)

So tempo is very important. Don’t overlook it. I’ll show you how to use it properly in the workouts below.

The 8 No-Equipment Bodyweight Exercises

Ok, now that you know why bodyweight training – the right way – can help you burn fat, let’s look at the 8 bodyweight exercises we’ll be using for the 10 workouts that follow.

1. Bulgarian Lunges

2. Step-Ups

3. Plank

4. Burpees

5. Push-Ups

6. Deadbug

7. Mountain Climbers

8. Single Leg Drop Squats

The 10 Bodyweight Workouts

Now that you know which bodyweight exercises we’ll be using, it’s time to sequence them together in 10 completely different workouts for you to enjoy. The following workouts are listed in order from easiest to most difficult.

Bodyweight Workout 1 – Beginner Circuit

Perform 30 seconds of one exercise, followed by 1 minute of rest. Then move on to next exercise. Once all 8 are complete, rest 2 minutes and repeat for a second set.

Step-Ups

Plank

Bulgarian Lunges

Deadbug

Burpees

Single Leg Drop Squats

Push-Ups

Mountain Climbers

Bodyweight Workout 2 – Intermediate Circuit

Perform 30 seconds of one exercise, followed by 30 seconds of rest. Then move on to next exercise. Once all 8 are complete, rest 1 minute and repeat for a second set.

Step-Ups

Plank

Bulgarian Lunges

Deadbug

Burpees

Single Leg Drop Squats

Push-Ups

Mountain Climbers

Bodyweight Workout 3 – Advanced Circuit

Perform 1 minute of one exercise, followed by 30 seconds of rest. Then move on to next exercise. Once all 8 are complete, rest 1 minute and repeat for a second set. Follow the appropriate tempos where noted (1-0-4 means “1 sec concentric”, “0 sec pause”, “4 sec eccentric”)

Step-Ups

Plank

Bulgarian Lunges (1-0-4)

Deadbug (1-0-4)

Burpees

Single Leg Drop Squats (1-0-4)

Push-Ups (1-0-4)

Mountain Climbers

Bodyweight Workout 4 – Beginner Superset

Perform 30 seconds of first exercise in superset, rest 30 seconds, then do second exercise. Rest 30 seconds and repeat for 3 sets. Then, move on to next superset.

1a. Step-Ups
1b. Plank

2a. Mountain Climbers
2b. Deadbug

3a. Burpees
3b. Single Leg Drop Squats

4a. Push-Ups
4b. Bulgarian Lunges

Bodyweight Workout 5 – Intermediate Superset

Perform 1 minute of first exercise in superset, rest 30 seconds, then do second exercise. Rest 30 seconds and repeat for 3 sets. Then, move on to next superset.

1a. Step-Ups
1b. Plank

2a. Mountain Climbers
2b. Deadbug

3a. Burpees
3b. Single Leg Drop Squats

4a. Push-Ups
4b. Bulgarian Lunges

Bodyweight Workout 6 – Advanced Superset

Perform 1 minute of first exercise in superset, rest 30 seconds, then do second exercise. Rest 30 seconds and repeat for 3 sets. Then, move on to next superset. Follow the appropriate tempo where noted.

1a. Step-Ups
1b. Plank

2a. Mountain Climbers
2b. Deadbug (1-0-4)

3a. Burpees
3b. Single Leg Drop Squats (1-0-4)

4a. Push-Ups (1-0-4)
4b. Bulgarian Lunges (1-0-4)

For the following tri-set workouts, notice we’re only using 6 exercises.

Bodyweight Workout 7 – Beginner Tri-Set

Perform 30 seconds at each exercise within the tri-set with 30 seconds of rest between each. Once all 3 are done, rest 1 minute, and then repeat for a total of 3 sets. Then, move on to next tri-set.

1a. Step-Ups
1b. Plank
1c. Mountain Climbers

2a. Deadbug
2b. Burpees
2c. Single Leg Drop Squats

Bodyweight Workout 8 – Intermediate Tri-Set

Perform 1 minute at each exercise within the tri-set with 30 seconds of rest between each. Once all 3 are done, rest 30 seconds, and then repeat for a total of 3 sets. Then, move on to next tri-set.

1a. Step-Ups
1b. Plank
1c. Mountain Climbers

2a. Deadbug
2b. Burpees
2c. Single Leg Drop Squats

Bodyweight Workout 9 – Advanced Tri-Set

Perform 1 minute at each exercise within the tri-set with 30 seconds of rest between each. Once all 3 are done, rest 30 seconds, and then repeat for a total of 3 sets. Then, move on to next tri-set. Follow the appropriate tempo where noted.

1a. Step-Ups
1b. Plank
1c. Mountain Climbers

2a. Deadbug (1-0-6)
2b. Burpees
2c. Single Leg Drop Squats (1-0-6)

Bodyweight Workout 10 – Advanced Combo Workout

Perform 1 minute of one exercise, followed by 30 seconds of rest. Then move on to next exercise. Once all 8 are complete, rest 1 minute and move onto tri-set. Follow the appropriate tempos where noted (1-0-4 means “1 sec concentric”, “0 sec pause”, “4 sec eccentric”)

Circuit

Step-Ups

Plank

Bulgarian Lunges (1-0-4)

Deadbug (1-0-4)

Burpees

Single Leg Drop Squats (1-0-4)

Push-Ups (1-0-4)

Mountain Climbers

Tri-Set

Perform 1 minute at each exercise within the tri-set with 30 seconds of rest between each. Once all 3 are done, rest 30 seconds, and move on to final superset.

1a. Step-Ups
1b. Plank
1c. Mountain Climbers

2a. Deadbug (1-0-4)
2b. Burpees
2c. Single Leg Drop Squats (1-0-4)

Superset

Perform 1 minute of first exercise in superset, rest 30 seconds, then do second exercise. Rest 30 seconds and repeat for 2 sets.

1a. Push-Ups (1-0-4)
1b. Bulgarian Lunges (1-0-4)

What to Do Next…

Want me to coach through a great full body bodyweight workout you can do anywhere? Download my Bodyweight Circuit 8 workout for FREE by clicking on the banner below. It’s a simple and effective bodyweight training workout that you can do at home or in the gym and you’ll have me on your headphones to coach and motivate you each step of the way.